Shipping case



July 5, 1932.

J. WARDWELL SHIPPING CASE e F d e l 1 F 1 Patented July 5, 1932 it i stares PATENT OFFICE SHIPPING CASE Application filed February 8, 1923, Serial The invention relates .to an improvement in shipping cases, particularly those for use in the shipment of valuable goods.

It is the object of the invention to pro- 1 vide a shipping case highly resistant tothe entry of damaging materials and elements without the leaving of palpable traces that such entry may have occurred.

There is readily available a variety of means for making the body portion and the cover portion of a shipping case individually resistant, to various degrees, to the entry of damaging materials and elements. An obvious method of accomplishing this is to use a one-piece body portion and a one-piece cover portion of some suitable material. However, a case composed of" such individually resistant portions fails of the purpose of making the closed case resitant, unless.

the joint between the two portions be made resistant to a proper degree.

A loose j oint facilitates the entry through it, without the leaving of evidence, of such damaging materials and elements as water,

a articlcsfrom other cargo and the tools of a pilferer. This loose joint cnables'a pilferer, without leaving any evidence of tampering, readily to locate the locks, saw through enough of them to gain entry into the case, remove the goods and. the undamaged locks, and close up the case by using the undamaged locks a secondtimen This loose joint often enables a pilferer to remove goods through it with a hooked wire;

and a loose joint contributes to weakness,

rather than to strength, in a case.

For protection against pilferage alone, it has heretofore been proposedto lockthe body and cover portions of a case together a by means of spring-pressed hooks disposed as principal parts, it is necessary, in order to make sure that the hooks will catch, to allow, between the body andcover. portions, for lost motion whichmust insure a loose joint.

An important object of'the invention. is

No. 617,813. Renewed January 10, 1930.

therefore to provide means whereby the jointbetween the body and cover portions is rendered resistant to a degree varying with the particular. requirements. I accomplish this by using animprovedlocking mechanism connecting the body and cover portions in such a way that the said joint is susceptible of being made initially tight when the case is first closed, and is kept tight by the successive retention of substantially all of each of any subsequent pressures tending to tighten the joint. Such pressures would include, in addition to those purposely applied, the weight of packages upon the case, the pressures created by turning the case over in handling, and the like. Q

Another important obj eot of the invention is to provide means whereby, although pilfering entry be secured by means such as destroying aboard, the body and cover portions cannot again be put together, even with the replacement of the destroyed board,

with the same looking mechanisms with which they were originally put together. 7 Fora full understanding of the invention, reference is made to the accompanying drawings in which Fig. 1 is a perspective view of a shipping case, parts being broken away to show the application of the invention;

Fig. 2 is a fragmentary plan view showing a modification thereof; and

Figs. 3 and 4 are perspective views of the componentparts of the lock proper.

In the drawings Fig. '1 represents a simple form of shipping case composed of the body portion and the cover portion 11.

As indicated a plurality of locks may be applied at different. points for interlocking the cover and the body portions of the case.

The number andlocation of thelocks is a matter of choiceor judgment. As indicated in Fig. 2, the lock may be applied in a corner instead of on the'sides or ends.

The locking mechanism comprises princi pally two members which are initially secured separately to a'wall of the body portion and to the cover portion, respectively. The locking mechanism is similar to construcinc bar 12 contributes to this alignment.

free end of the bar may be'slightly rounded so that .it' readily enters the'part 14. The 7 cover then can be moved inwardly to the very complementary part consists of a plate 15 having a recess 16 for receiving the bar 12 and housing detent mechanism composed of a disk 17 and a spring 18.

The recess16 defines a vertical wall 19 and an inclined wall 20 on the opposite side. The bar 12 normally moves in contact with wall 19 and the disk 17 and spring 18 are disposed between bar 12 and the wall 20. An abutment 23 at'the upper end of plate 15 bears upon the edge of the bar 12 and co-operates with the wall 19 to guide the bar 12 in prescribed vertical path.-

The spring 18 bears upwardly against the disk 17 and'thus continuously exerts pressure against it tending to wedge it into the converging space defined by the free edge of the bar 12 and the wall 20 of plate 15.

When bar 12 moves downwardly, or generally into engagement with the member 14, it comes into contact with disk 17 and rolls it along wall 20 while spring 18 continuously maintains it in contact with the edge of the bar and the wall 20. The bar 12 is thus free to move inwardly into the member 14,1but reverse movement is prevented by the automatic binding action ofdisk 17. The pressure of the spring 18 produces such a frictional contact between disk 17 and the bar 12 that sliding movementofbar 12 is made v impossible.

Any relative movement would involve a rolling of the disk. .A rolling of the disk, however, would tremendously increase the wedging pressure. In fact, such wedging pressure would increase in proportion to the force applied on bar 12 tending to withdraw it. The wedging pressure is such that reverse sliding of the bar 12 will not occur even if the surfaces cominginto contact are polished and oiled.

In contradistinction to the prior art, the

lock described needs no fine adjustment. It

.merely requires an approximate Vertical alignment ofbar 12 with the channel between wall-19 and abutment 23. The joint in the The limit by applyingsuflicient pressure. The lock is effective wherever this limit is reached. A particular relative position between the bar 12 and member 14 is immaterial.

It sometimes happens that boards tend to warp and cause a slight change of relative position between the cover and the body portion. With my construction no outward movement is possible and an inward movement would be automatically taken up by the lock so that a looseness or opening-up is made practically impossible.

One special purpose of the invention is to conceal effectively the position of the locks, and other fastenings of the case, so as to discourage pilferage attempts from the very beginning. 1

The portion 14 comprises plate 15 and a cover plate 15a for thefrecess 16. In the particular instance the cover plate is coextensive with the plate 14 and has holes 24a and 25a registering with holes 24 and 25 in plate 15.

Holes 24 and 24aare screw holes through which the lock member 14 is secured to the side or end of a casing as. shown in Fig. 1, while 25 and 25a serve similarly to secure the lock in a corner as indicated in Fig. 2.

While the locking mechanism thus far described is complete and highly efiicient for the'purposes for which it is intended, I prefer to make provisions which make a second 9 use of the same lock impossible. To this end I propose to, generally provide means whereby the plate 15 and the cover plate 15a are inseparably interlocked during the application of the locking mechanism i. e. during the closing of the cover upon the box and the concurrent movement of the bar 12 into locking position.

While within the scope of this phase of my invention variousmeans and ways may be available, I propose to use the bar 12 itself as the element for interlocking the plates 15 and 15a. As is indicated in Fig. 3, the plate 15 may have one or more strap elements 26, 27 and the cover plate 15a may have a complementary strap member 28 so disposed relatively to each other and the bar 12 as to make movement of the plates 15 and 15a away from each other impossible without substantially destroying the look as a working unit. The strap 28 extends into a recess 29 in the plate 15. As the bar '12 moves into locking position, the strap 28 and the straps 26 and 27 are disposed upon relatively 0pposite sides of bar 12 and effectively prevent separation of plates 15 and 156; from each other. Access to the locking elements 17 and 18 is therefore made impossible except by mutilating the lock and practically destroying it. I

This feature, aside from the'advantage of generally making a re-use of a lock imposs'ible, contributes in its own way toward making a. pilfering entrywithout leaving evidence thereof a diflicult problem..

Battens 30 prevent the entry of cutting tools into the joint between the body and cover portions, and serve as a shoulder for packing means to make the said joint watertight.

I prefer to place two pin points 31 on the portion 1 1 on opposite sides of the channel for the bar 12 to protect the bar from the action of cutting tools and to serve as markers to facilitate the positioning and the alignment of the bar 12 on the cover.

The pairs of pin points 31 project above the upper edges of the body 10 of the box, and are located in substantial alignment with the respective recesses into which the bars 12 are to be locked. To insure that the straps 12 are properly positioned to engage the complementary parts of the lock. portions 14 are secured in place and the cover 11 is applied and pressed down upon the pins 31. Upon removing the cover, the lower face will then bear four indentations which show the two places at which the bars 12 must be secured for the parts to engage when the cover is finally applied to the box.

I am fully aware that within the scope of the invention the interlocking of the plate 15 and cover 15a could be carried out in Va rious other ways. It is also obvious that there is considerable latitude in respect to the detail arrangement generally.

I claim: j

1. In a shipping case, a body portion, a cover portion, and a locking mechanism comprising a member connected to a wall of the body portion and a member connected to the cover portion, the said members beingv constructed and arranged to enter freely into interlocking engagement when the cover is moved to closing position and being operative in several relative positions to prevent sub stantial relative movement of the two members in reverse direction.

2. In a shipping-case, a body portion, a cover portion, locking mechanism comprising a member connected to a wall of the body portion and a member connected to the cover portion, the said members being constructed and arrangedto enter freely into interlocking engagement when the cover is moved to closing position, and means operative in a plurality of interlocking positions to pre'vent substantial relative movement of the two members in reverse direction.

'3. In a shipping case, a body portion, a cover portion, locking mechanism comprising a member connected to a wall of the body portion and a member connected to the cover portion, the said members being constructed and arranged to enter freely into interlocking engagement when the cover is moved to closing position, and including means operative in all interlocking positions to prevent substantial relative movement of the two members in reverse direction, and means on the case defining an obstruction against access to the joint between the body portion and cover portion. a g Y r a 4.. In a shipping case, a body portion, a

cover portion and locking mechanism comprising a member connected to a wall of the body portion and a member connected to the cover portion, the said members being conwhen the cover approaches fully closed position, and means on the casing and secured thereto from within for preventing access to the joint between the cover and the body portion when the case is closed. I

6.-. Locking mechanism for use in shipping cases, comprising a member adapted to be secured to the body portion of the casing and a member adapted to be secured to the cover, said members being constructed and arranged to freely enter into interlocking engagement when the cover is moved to closing position and means operative in several interlocking positions to prevent relative movement of the two members in reverse direction. 7. Locking mechanism for use in shipping cases, comprising a member adapted to be secured to the body portion. of the casing and a member adapted to besecured to the cover,

said members being constructed and arranged to freely enter into interlocking engagement when the cover is moved to closing position and a spring pressed detent disposed on one of the members and arranged to yield to the other member when the latter moves into interlocking engagement, said detent being constructed to rigidly interlock the two members against relative movement in reverse direction irrespective of the relative position i of the two members. V I

8 Looking mechanism for use in shipping cases, comprising a bar adapted to be. se-

cured to the cover substantially at a right angle thereto, a plate having a recess defining two walls at an angle to each other, one of the said walls forming a slide way for the bar, a disk movably disposedin the recessadjacent the other wall, a spring tending to force the disk toward the narrow end of the recess, the arrangement being such that the disk yields to the bar when the latter is moved in one direction inthe recess and firmly wedges the bar in any position-against movement in I in v.

'reverse direction, and means for securing the "plate to the body portion of the'casing.

9. Locking mechanism for use in shipping cases, comprising a plate member having in one face a recess defining walls slightly inclined relatively to each other, a disk movably disposed in the recess adjacent one of the walls near the relatively narrow end of the recess, a spring bearing upon the disk and tending to move it toward the narrow end of the recess,means for limitingthemovement of the disk, and a bar adapted to enter the re Y direction.

10. Arrangement according to claim 9 includmg an abutment 1n the narrow end of the 11. Arrangement according to claim 8 including a plate co-extensive with the said plate and forming a cover for said recess, and means for securing the two plates together.

12. A shipping case having a member adapted to be secured to the inner surface of Y the wall of the case and having a projecting part adapted to enter'the inner surface of the cover, a member prO ecting lnwardly from the cover, and a member carried by the first -member and adapted for gripping engagement with the second member to prevent removal of the cover.

13. A device adapted for use in sealing shipping cases, including a member adapted to be secured to the inner surface of a wall of the case with a part projecting above the upper edge thereof to enter the inner surface of the-cover when the latter is applied, a member adapted to be carried by the cover and project inwardly therefrom, and means carried by said first mentioned member for automatically gripping the second mentioned member to prevent removal of the cover.

14. A device adapted for use in sealing shipping cases, including a member adapted to be secured to the inner surface of the wall of'the case and having a substantially vertical surface, a member mounted on the first mentioned member andmovable upwardly and toward said surface, a spring normally tending to hold said second mentioned member in the upper limiting position, and a member adapted to be carried by the cover and project inwardly therefrom between said surface and said second mentioned member, and to be gripped against said surface by said second mentioned member to prevent the removal of the cover with said third mentioned member;

15. A container having a body portion and a, cover portion, a locking mechanism having two members, one member associated with the a: cover portion and the other member connected yto the body portion, and oppositely facing elements on one member adapted automatically to grip the other member nonrotatably between them in any of aplurality of interlocking positions to prevent separation of said body and cover portions.

16. 'A container having two portions in combination with a locking mechanism havingtwo members, a part of one of said members being adapted to interlock with the other of said members in any of a plurality of relative positions when in predetermined alignment, each of said members being adapted to restrain one of said portions against separa- "tion from the other portion when said part is in any of said interlocking positions, said part being movable relative to the portion which it restrainsto facilitate said alignment. recess cooperating with one of the walls to define a guide for the bar.

17, A single-use locking mechanism coma part movable into the second member through a sole opening therein, cooperating elements on said part and in said second member adapted to lock saidpart withinsaid second member, said part being formed to fill said sole opening to prevent access to said elements when effective .to lock said part within said secondmember.

18. A container having a body portion and a cover portion,a locking mechanism having two members, one member adapted to restrain the body portion and the other member adapted to restrain the cover portion, and means associated with one of said members to mark the portion to be restrained by the other member for the location of said last member relative to said last portion to insure registry between said members, said mechanism adapted to be effective in any of a plurality of positions of relative approach of said portions to prevent substantial relative departure of said portions.

19. A container having a cover portion and a body portion, an automatic take-up mechanism including a spring-pressed detent and having two members, one member being associated with the cover portion and the other member being connected with the body portion, saidcontainer and mechanism being constructed and arranged whereby relative approach of said portions enforces a corresponding relative approach of said members, said mechanism being effective in any of a plurality of positions of relative approach of said portions to prevent substantial relative movement of said portions in reverse direction.

20. A container having a body portion and a coverportion, a locking mechanism having two members, one member being associated with the cover portion and the other member being connected to the body portion, said members being adapted to interlock in any of a plurality of positionsof relative approach of said portions to prevent substantial relative departure of said portions.

21. A single-use locking device comprising two members operative to have unobstructed movement relatively to each other in the direction in which the locking operation is effected and including means for automatically retaining the two members against relative movement in reverse direction, said means being so housed within the retaining member as to be inaccessible and theft proof against any release of said means.

22. The structure of claim 21, wherein the retaining member is formed of separate parts, said parts having portions cooperating with the retained member for preventing separation of said parts.

In testimony whereof I aflix my signature.

220 JOSEPH BRADFORD VVARDWELL. 

